The boy was arrested about 4:10 p.m. at his Escondido home on suspicion of making a false report of an emergency, Escondido police Capt. Michael Loarie said. The boy faces a misdemeanor charge and was released to his parents.

The high school was on lockdown for a little more than an hour Thursday as police searched the campus in response to a call about a suspicious person.

Police received a call at 10 a.m. from a person who reported seeing a high school-age boy carrying what appeared to be an Airsoft rifle — which can resemble a real gun — on the north side of campus near the baseball fields. The caller said the boy had long brown hair and was wearing all black clothing.

Police called the school and asked for a lockdown, sending all students and staff indoors.

Patrol units, investigations teams, and a sheriff’s helicopter responded, searching the 53-acre campus on North Broadway and the area outside the school.

During the search, police received a call saying three shots were heard nearby. Police later determined that the sounds came from an apartment complex.

The search, which lasted about 65 minutes, yielded no evidence of gunshots or the suspicious person, Loarie said. The lockdown was lifted at 11:15 a.m.

Police kept uniformed and undercover officers near the school for the rest of the day. Classes resumed, though up to 200 students were picked up early by their parents.

After police lifted the lockdown, the school resource officer and detectives investigated the suspicious-sighting report, Loarie said. The investigation and information from school officials led detectives to focus on a juvenile they believed was involved in the original call, Loarie said.

Loarie said it became apparent that there never was a man with a gun on campus and that the caller had concocted the story. He said investigators reviewed video from security cameras around the campus, and “the information from the caller was not matching what we were seeing on the video.”

Loarie said that having a suspect in custody Thursday was important for restoring a sense of security.

The campus was back to normal Friday, with absences below average at 87, Watkins said.

Loarie said the arrest also lets the community know that “it is not OK to make false calls to the police,” noting that public safety resources were tied up for several hours. Up to 50 police employees were involved in the call.